Illuminated eyewear

ABSTRACT

Illuminated eyewear is provided. In one form, the temple arm members have all the lighting components mounted thereto including for each temple arm member a light, power source for the light, and electrical connections including a switch for providing power from the power source to the light. In another form, the cross-frame member has blinder portions integrally formed at either end thereof which are configured to block stray light to avoid glare problems. The blinder portions preferably include surfaces that are inclined to generally extend along the light cone generated by an LED light source mounted to the front end portion of each of the temple arm members. In another form, the temple arm members each have a recessed cavity formed in inner surface portion thereof in which the power source and switch components are received with the switch actuator mounted to the inner surface portion so it is hidden from view when the eyewear is worn for enhanced aesthetics.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119 (e) to U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 61/247,243 entitled “Illuminated Eyewear” filed Sep. 30,2009, the contents of which are incorporated by reference in itsentirety herein.

FIELD

The invention relates to hands-free lighting devices and, moreparticularly, to illuminated eyewear.

BACKGROUND

Often an individual desires a light source to illuminate an area whileperforming a task or a light source directed in a general outwarddirection for visibility. Holding a flashlight is an option, but suchlighting devices are often cumbersome and may detract from the taskbeing completed because the flashlight must be held. As a result,hands-free lighting is often used because the individual desiringillumination does not need to hold the light source. Common types ofhand-free lighting include light sources mounted to headgear oreyeglasses.

Light sources on eyeglasses usually include mounting arrangements of thelight source, which may be an LED, on either the cross-frame or templeof the eyeglass so as to provide illumination forwardly of the wearer.In such configuration, lighted eyeglasses are typically used to providedirected or focused light so that an area immediately forward of thewearer, e.g., 6-24 inches from their eyes, can be illuminated for taskssuch as reading typical sized print. For other activities, such aswalking at night, camping or emergency use, lighting areas even furtherahead of the individual may be desirable. However, prior lighted glassesconfigured to provide hands-free lighting for some of these variouspurposes have often been heavy, bulky, inconvenient, and/or otherwiseprovide unsatisfactory performance.

Some prior lighted glasses have separate and bulky lighting modulesfastened to the glasses such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,541,767 toMurphy et al.; 4,959,760 to Wu; and 3,769,663 to Perl. Because of theirlarge lighting modules, these glasses are bulky and may be fairly heavymaking them inconvenient for a user to wear. Further, these priorlighted glasses conspicuously mount the lighting modules to the glassesor incorporate electronic components for the lighting therein so thatthe presence of the light modules or electronic components is visuallyprominent when the glasses are worn, giving the glasses an unsightlyappearance.

Prior lighted glasses are also known where lighting components includingthe light and power sources and the light switch are distributed alongthe eyeglass frame by mounting the light source to the front cross-framemember of the glasses and then mounting the other electrical componentsfor the light source to the temple arms. In one arrangement, wires ofthe electrical components are run from the power source to the lightsource across the pivot connections between the temple arms and thefront cross-frame member, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,946,071to Feldman and 5,722,762 to Soll. These glasses, however, can complicatethe pivoting action between the temple arms and the front frame memberdue to the wires spanning the pivot connection between the temple armsand front, cross-frame member of the glasses. If the wires are runoutside of the frame of the glasses, the glasses are provided with anunsightly appearance.

Lighted glasses are known that utilize the pivoting motion of the templearms to turn the lights on and off so that the glasses have hingeswitches, such as those as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,218,385 to Lii;and 4,283,127 to Rosenwinkel; and U.S. Patent Publication Nos.2003/0189824 to Meeder et al. and 2006/0012974 to Su. The hinge switchpowers the light source when the temple arms are unfolded and turns offthe light source when the temple arms are folded. Typically, the hingeswitch employs separate electrical contacts on the temple arm and thecross-frame member so that when the temple arms are unfolded, thecontacts engage each other to provide power to the light source. In thismanner, use of wires spanning the pivot connections between the templearms and cross-frame member is avoided. However, the use of moving partsto establish an electrical connection between a power source mounted tothe temple arms and a light source mounted to the cross-frame membercreates reliability problems. For instance, with repeated usage andpivoting of the temple arms relative to the front cross-frame member,the tolerances therebetween can change so that the degree of engagementbetween the contacts changes which can cause intermittent conductancebetween the contacts when the temple arm members are pivoted open. Suchintermittent conductance results in the lights blinking on and off.Similarly, repeated usage can cause wear of the engagement surfaces ofthe contacts also resulting in the blinking problem created byintermittent conductance across the contacts. In addition, if theglasses only use a hinge switch, the lights are always on when thetemple arms are pivoted open and thus cannot be used as conventional,unlighted glasses. One solution is to provide another on/off switch, butthis undesirably adds complexity and cost to the lighted glasses andrequires additional electronics on the glasses which can contribute toan unsightly appearance.

SUMMARY

Illuminated eyewear is provided that directs light forwardly from theuser when wearing the eyewear. The illuminated eyewear herein is in theform of eyeglasses, either with or without lenses, or with a lens orlenses that can be refractive or non-refractive, that in one aspect hasthe lights arranged so as to optimize their performance. In anotheraspect, the illustrated eyewear herein has electrical components for thelights arranged to provide enhanced aesthetics over prior lightedeyeglasses.

In one form, the eyewear includes a pair of temple arm members whereeach temple arm member has a forward and rearward end. Each temple armmember also has inner and outer surface portions that have a flatconfiguration and extend lengthwise between the forward and rearwardends of the respective temple arm members. The eyewear further includesa front support including, at least in part, a bridge portion thatextends between the forward ends of the temple arms members. Hingeconnections couple the temple arm members with the front supportallowing the temple arm members to pivot relative thereto. The eyewearalso includes a light source mounted to each temple arm and a pluralityof thin, compact generally flat batteries, such as conventionaldisc-shaped coin-cell batteries, for providing power to the lightsources. Peripheral shapes for the flat batteries other than circularare also contemplated such as with rechargeable coin-cell batteries thathave an oblong configuration. Each temple arm member includes a narrowwidth battery compartment positioned between the flat inner surfaceportion and the flat outer surface portion of the temple arm member. Thenarrow width battery compartments are sized so that a pair of thin, flatbatteries may be received in a non-overlapping, side-by-side arrangementwith main flat surfaces of the batteries facing the flat inner and outersurface portions of the respective temple arm members. The plurality ofbatteries are connected to the light sources by an electrical connectionto be powered thereby. Accordingly, for each temple arm member, thelight source, the associated batteries, and the electrical connectiontherebetween are mounted to the temple member so that there are noelectrical components that span the hinge connections between the templearm members and the front support.

So configured, the illuminated eyewear has temple arm members thatmaintain a narrow width while at the same time also include all of thelighting components in the temple arm members. This configuration ofeyewear that mounts the light source, batteries, and the electricalconnection therebetween all in the respective temple arm members avoidsthe unsatisfactory performance issues associated with prior hingeswitches because electrical power is not routed through or otherwisereliant on operation of a hinge. Moreover, by employing a narrow widthbattery compartment between the inner and outer surface of the templearm members to receive the pair of thin, flat batteries in anon-overlapping and side-by-side arrangement, the eyewear, and inparticular, the temple arm members, retain an appearance as they wouldwith traditional eyeglasses. The narrow battery compartment andside-by-side arrangement of the thin, flat batteries eliminates bulkyand unsightly modules and large bulges in the eyeglass frame to housebatteries such as with conventional, generally cylindrical flashlightbatteries and avoids the unsightly appearance this arrangement createsas can be seen in the prior lighted glasses such as shown in U.S. Pat.No. 2,638,532 to Brady.

In another form, the eyewear includes a front support including, atleast in part, a bridge portion that generally extends laterally along alateral axis. The eyewear further includes a pair of temple arm membersand a hinge connection between each of the temple arm members and thefront support. So configured, the temple arm members are pivotal betweena use configuration with the temple arm members extending rearwardlyfrom the front support along respective fore-and-aft axes that aregenerally orthogonal to the lateral axis, and a storage configurationwith the temple arm members generally extending laterally adjacent tothe front support along the lateral axis. Adjacent to each of the hingeconnections are a front frame portion and a light source. Each frontframe portion includes a blinder surface adjacent the light source andat a laterally inward location therefrom. The binder surface extendstransversely to the lateral axis, and preferably at a laterally inwardcant obliquely to the lateral axis to be inclined relative thereto.

So configured, the blinder surfaces minimize incident light from thelight sources from causing glare when the temple arms are pivoted to theuse configuration and the illuminated eyewear is worn with the lightson.

In a preferred form, the light sources are LEDs that have apredetermined light cone such as 40 degree LEDs, and the preferredcanted blinder surfaces are inclined to the lateral axis in a manner toavoid significant interference with the cones of light generated by theLEDs while blocking incident light outside the light cones from reachingthe eyes of the wearer of the lighted eyeglasses. Most preferably, theinclination of the blinder surfaces is substantially matched to theangle of the light cone so that only incident light from the LEDs isblocked by the blinder surfaces.

In another aspect, the illuminated eyewear has a cross-frame member thatincludes the front frame portions so that the blinder surfaces areintegrated in the cross-frame member. The front frame portions are atlateral ends of the cross-frame member and extend laterally andrearwardly to the pivot connections with the temple arm members at theirforward ends, at which the LEDs are mounted. Thus, when the temple armmembers are pivoted to their use configuration, this pivots the LEDs tobe adjacent a rear portion of the inclined blinder surfaces integratedinto the cross-frame member. In a preferred form, the blinder surfaceseach can be formed as a generally semi-frustoconical surface so that anotch opening is formed at the rearward end of the semi-frustoconicalsurface into which the LED is pivoted when the temple arm members arepivoted open to their use configuration.

In yet another form, the illuminated eyewear includes a pair of templearm members with each temple arm member having forward and rearwardends, and a front support including, at least in part, a bridge portionthat extends laterally between the forward ends of the temple armmembers. A hinge is provided between each of the forward ends of thetemple arm members and the laterally extending front support that allowseach temple arm member to be shifted between an open configuration,where the temple arm members are pivoted away from the laterallyextending front support to extend rearwardly therefrom, and a closedconfiguration, where the temple arm members are pivoted toward thelaterally extending front support to extend therealong adjacent thereto.Each temple arm member includes a light source mounted thereto forprojecting light therefrom, a power source for providing power to thelight source, and a switch for turning the light source on and off. Eachtemple arm member also includes a laterally inner surface portion thatgenerally faces laterally inwardly toward the other laterally innersurface portion when the temple arm members are shifted to the openconfiguration. Each laterally inner surface portion includes a recessedcavity sized to receive the power source and the switch therein suchthat the presence of the power source and the switch is substantiallyhidden from view.

By providing the cavity for the power source and switch recessed intothe laterally inner surface portion of the temple arm member, theilluminated eyewear in this form has an appearance more similar toconventional non-illuminated eyewear. For example, prior lightedeyeglasses commonly have light modules mounted to an outer surface ofeyeglass temple arms facing laterally outward therefrom. Configured thisway, the light module projects outwardly from the laterally outer facingsurface, making the eyewear significantly wider and prominentlydisplaying the module so it can be readily seen when the lightedeyeglasses are worn. Likewise, prior lighted eyeglasses with a batterycompartment recessed into the outer surfaces of the temple arms exposethe battery compartment cover so that it is readily visible when theeyeglasses are worn. These conspicuous displays of lighting componentsin prior lighted eyeglasses detract from the aesthetics and appearanceof the eyewear. The illuminated eyewear of this form, on the other hand,has all of the lighting components mounted to the temple arm members andconcealed therein in a manner so that it is not immediately apparentthat the illumination components are present on the glasses. Morespecifically, by recessing the compartment for the power source andswitch in the inner surface portion of the temple arm, the lightedeyewear herein can appear to be substantially similar to conventionaleyeglasses when being worn.

In yet another form, the illuminated eyewear includes a pair of templearm portions, each having rear end portions configured to rest on auser's ears and opposite forward end portions. The illuminated eyewearfurther includes a front support portion that includes opposite endportions and an intermediate bridge portion configured to rest on auser's nose. Pivot or hinge connections are positioned between theforward end portions of the temple arm portions and the opposite endportions of the front support portion. So configured, the temple armportions and the front support portion have a use configuration wherethe front support portion generally extends along a lateral axis and thetemple arm portions extend along longitudinal axes that are generallyorthogonal to the lateral axis. A light source is mounted adjacent toeach of the pivot connections so as to be canted laterally inwardly fromthe respective longitudinal axis of the temple arm portion anddownwardly from the front support portion to provide forwardillumination inwardly and downwardly therefrom. The illuminated eyewearalso includes a pair of thin, generally flat batteries for each lightsource. A portion of each temple arm portion is enlarged in at least twodirections orthogonal to each other and orthogonal to the longitudinalaxis. Each temple arm enlarged portion has a battery compartment forfitting the pair of batteries in a stacked, overlapping orientationtherein.

In this form of the illuminated eyewear, the inward and downward cant ofthe light source advantageously provides an overlap between the lightbeams projected by the light sources that is focused forwardly of thewearer in their field of view. Thus, the wearer does not need to tilt orshift their head to align the light sources or orient the illuminationto focus the light beams within the wearer's field of view.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of illuminated eyewear showing temple armmembers in a pivoted open configuration relative to a cross-frame memberwith an LED light source on each temple arm disposed adjacent respectiveblinder portions of the cross-frame member;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view of the illuminated eyewear showingboth of the LED light sources adjacent corresponding blinder portions ofthe front, cross-frame member;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the illuminated eyewear showing the LED lightsources being canted laterally inward so that the axes of light conesprojected therefrom are canted laterally inward toward each other;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view partially in section showingan inclined surface of the blinder portion having an inclinationsubstantially aligned with that of the inner edge of the light cone;

FIG. 5 is an elevational view showing one of the temple arm membersincluding an integral tubular LED holder that directs the light conedownwardly;

FIG. 6 is an elevated view of one of the temple arm members showing abattery compartment cover and a light switch actuator adjacent thereto;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, exploded view of a portion of the temple armmember of FIG. 6 showing a battery compartment recessed in an innersurface of the temple arm member;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged view of the other temple arm member showing aswitch compartment adjacent the battery compartment;

FIG. 9 is an elevational view of a 3-position switch device showing fourcontact pins depending therefrom;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view showing the three different pin connectionsfor the 3-position switch device of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a enlarged side elevational view of an exemplary LED for usewith hands-free lighting devices showing an LED lens having lightreflective and blocking coatings thereon;

FIG. 11A is an enlarged side elevational view of an alternative LEDshowing reflective tape wrapped about the LED lens;

FIG. 12A is a side elevational view of illuminated eyewear in accordancewith the present invention showing one of the temple arms in an extendedposition and a light module attached to the arm;

FIG. 12B is a side elevational view of the illuminated eyewear of FIG.12A showing the arm in a retracted position;

FIG. 13A is a side elevational view of alternative, illuminated eyewearin accordance with the present invention showing one of the temple armsin an extended position and a light module attached to the arm;

FIG. 13B is a side elevational view of the illuminated eyewear of FIG.13A showing the arm in a retracted position;

FIG. 13C is an enlarged, fragmentary view of the temple arms of FIGS.12A, 12B, 13A, and 13B showing a releasable locking structure betweenforward and rearward segments of the arm;

FIG. 14 is a plan view of the illuminated eyewear of FIG. 12 showingboth of the temple arms and a cross-frame member extending between theforward ends of the arms in an extended position;

FIG. 15A is a plan view of the illuminated eyewear of FIGS. 12A and 12Bshowing both the temple arms and the cross-frame member in theirretracted positions;

FIG. 15B is a plan view of the illuminated eyewear of FIGS. 13A and 13Bshowing both the temple arms and cross-frame member in their retractedpositions;

FIGS. 16-23 are plan and side elevational views of alternative templeportions for illuminated eyewear having integrated power sources andLEDs;

FIG. 24 is a plan view of the illuminated eyewear and a battery chargerfor recharging the integrated power source of the temple arms;

FIG. 25 is a plan view of alternative illuminated eyewear showing apower module carried on a lanyard for the frames;

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of a LED embodying features of the presentinvention showing a lens and pair of lead surrounded by a protectivecovering;

FIG. 27 is a cross-sectional view of the LED in FIG. 26 generally takenalong lines 50-50 showing the protective covering surrounding the LED;

FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional view of the LED in FIG. 26 generally takenalong lines 51-51 showing the protective covering surrounding the LEDlens; and

FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional view of the LED in FIG. 26 generally takenalong lines 52-52 showing the protective covering surrounding the LEDleads;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In general and as further described below, illuminated eyewear, whichmay or may not include a lens or lenses 21 attached thereto, is providedto provide lighting forwardly of the wearer. The illuminated eyewear 10can be configured to have a typical eyeglass frame 11 with a pluralityof generally rigid frame members including a pair of spaced temple armmembers 12 and a front cross-frame member 14 extending laterally betweenthe temple arm members 12. As illustrated, the temple arm members 12 arepivotally connected to the cross-member 14 via hinges 30 at the juncturebetween laterally opposite end portions 16 of the cross-frame member 14and front end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12.

Other constructions for the frame 11 of the lighted eyewear 10 are alsocontemplated including those where the cross-frame member 14 is modifiedto include several components or parts or where these parts aresubstantially reduced or even eliminated such as by only including anintermediate bridge portion or member 20 connected at either end thereofto lenses 21. The cross-member 14 can also have the laterally outer,front frame end portions 16 connected only to the laterally outwardportions of the lenses 21 with these outer frame portions 16 beingseparate from the intermediate bridge portion 20 so that the cross-framemember 14 includes multiple parts. Alternatively, only a single lens 21may be provided extending between and pivotally connected to the forwardend portions 44 of the temple arm members 12 with the bridge portion 20integrated into the lens 21 so that lens 21 constitutes part of theeyeglass frame. The lenses 21 themselves may be either refractive toprovide vision correction or non-refractive to only provide atransparent shield for protection, as with safety glasses. Manifestly,the lens or lenses 21 need not be provided as the eyeglass frame couldbe used only to provide for hands-free lighting. Herein, the term frontsupport contemplates all these and other constructions for the single ormultiple part cross-frame member with, or without lenses where the frontsupport is used to support the front portion of the lighted eyeglassesherein on a person wearing the lighted eyeglasses.

The frame 11 of the illuminated eyeglasses 10 could also be one integralpiece, with or without lens or lenses 21, with the hinges or hingeconnections 30 between the temple arm and cross-frame or front supportportions being in the form of living hinges. In this regard, the hingeswould be portions of the frame 11 that are resiliently flexible such asby being reduced in their cross-sectional thickness over adjacent frameportions to allow the temple arm portions 12 to be resiliently folded toa substantially closed position adjacent the front support to provide acompact storage configuration for fitting in an eyeglass case forexample, with the temple arm portions 12 resiliently returning to theiruse configuration extending generally rearwardly from the front supportwhen the eyeglasses 10 are removed from the storage case.

The illuminated eyewear 10 preferably has at least a pair of lightsources 18 mounted thereto to provide lighting forwardly of a wearer.The light sources 18 are preferably light emitting diodes (LEDs), butother suitable electroluminescent lamps, suitable incandescent lamps,gas discharge lamps, high-intensity discharge lamps, or any othersuitable light source, such as a laser diode, can be utilized.

Referring to FIGS. 1-8, one form of exemplary illuminated eyewear 10 isillustrated in more detail. As mentioned above, the front-support orcross-frame member 14 includes the intermediate bridge portion 20intermediate of the end portions 16. The bridge portion 20 is configuredto allow the cross-frame member 14 to rest on and be supported by thebridge of a wearer's nose. The bridge portion 20 includes downwardly andrearwardly extending side rests 22 configured to engage the sides of thewearer's nose. As illustrated, the bridge portion 20 is a portion of theillustrated integral, one-piece cross-frame member 14 and has atruncated generally triangular shape, however, the bridge portion 20could alternatively include other configurations, such as employingadjustable pads attached to the cross-frame member 14 configured tocontact and rest upon the sides of the wearer's nose instead of the siderests 22 and frame configuration.

In the illustrated form, the cross-frame member 14 of the illuminatedeyewear 10 includes an upper frame portion 24 and a lower frame portion26 extending from both sides of the bridge portion 20 to the endportions 16 thereof. However, the front support may also include aframeless construction or have only either the upper frame portion 24 orthe lower frame portion 26. In another approach, the front support 14consists of the bridge portion 20 attached directly to lenses, whichthen can attach directly to the temple arm members 12 or can have anintermediate frame part or portion pivotally coupling the lenses to thetemple arm members 12. Other configurations for the front support couldalso be employed, as has been previously discussed.

The end portions 16 can have a generally arcuate configuration to extendlaterally from the laterally outer portions of the lenses 23 andrearwardly to be pivotably connected to the temple arm members 12, ascan be seen in FIGS. 1 and 3. As illustrated, the upper frame memberportion 24 and the lower frame member portion 26 form lens openings 28in which the lenses 21 are fit. The lens openings 28 are configured tosupport a variety of eyeglass lens types. For example, the lens openings28 may be used to support lenses used for safety glasses, sunglasses,prescription glasses, other protective eyewear, or any suitablecombination thereof. Alternatively, the lens openings 28 can be leftempty and/or the cross-frame member 14 can be formed without the lowerframe member portion 26.

The forward end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12 are pivotallyconnected to the end portions 16 of the cross-frame member 14 by thehinges 30 to form pivot connections therebetween to allow the temple armmembers 12 to pivot relative thereto. When pivoted to an open or useconfiguration as shown in FIG. 1, the temple arm members 12 extendgenerally rearwardly from the cross-frame member 14 along fore-and-aftaxes L1 that are generally orthogonal to a lateral axis L2 along whichthe cross-frame member 14 generally extends. The temple arm members 12are also configured to pivot or shift to a collapsed, closed, or storageconfiguration with each temple arm member 12 generally extendinglaterally along the L2 axis adjacent to the cross-frame member 14. Ascan be seen in FIG. 3, both the temple arm members 12 and thecross-frame member 14 have curvatures such that they do not extendlinearly along their respective axes L1 and L2 but rather more generallytherealong, as described above.

As discussed above, the temple arm members 12 are pivotally connected tothe cross-member 14 via the hinges 30 at the juncture between thelaterally opposite end portions 16 of the cross-frame member 14 and theforward end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12. In the illustratedform, the forward end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12 arethicker in the lateral direction than the remainder of the temple armmembers 12 extending rearwardly therefrom. The forward end portions 44of each of the temple arm members 12 are enlarged in two directions thatare orthogonal to each other and orthogonal to the longitudinal axis L1of the temple arm members 12. As shown, the temple arm members 12 arerelatively thin even with the thicker forward end portions 44 which areapproximately twice as thick as the remainder of the temple arms. Asdiscussed hereinafter, the thicker forward portions 44 are configured tohouse electrical components that are operable to selectively provideelectrical power to the LEDs 18.

More particularly, the temple arm members 12 extend rearwardly from theforward portion 44 to an intermediate portion 34 configured to rest onand be supported by the ears of the wearer. The intermediate portion 34has a bottom edge 33 that tapers up toward the top edge 35 of the templearm members 12 to reduce the height thereof for properly fitting on theears of the wearer. The temple arm members 12 terminate with a distalportion 36 that extends laterally inwardly and downwardly as it extendsrearwardly from the intermediate portion 34 to rearward ends 37 of thetemple arm members 12. So configured, the temple arm members 12generally follow the contour of the wearer's head from adjacent the eyesto a position behind the ears. Alternatively, the distal portions 36need not extend downwardly and the intermediate portion 34 of the templearm members 12 need not rest on a wearer's ears instead gripping on theside of the wearer's head as is known.

As discussed above, the intermediate portion 34 and the distal portion36 are thinner in the lateral direction than the forward portion 44 ofthe temple arm members 12. However, even with the enlarged forwardportion 44, the thickness of the temple arm members 12 are very thinsuch that they have a generally flat configuration akin to temple armmembers commonly provided with traditional non-lighted eyeglasses. Byway of example and not limitation, the lateral thickness of theintermediate and distal portions of the temple arm members 12 can beapproximately 3 mm, and the lateral thickness of the forward portion 44can be approximately 5 mm. Configurations other than generally flatcould also be employed for the temple arm members 12 such as byincluding both flat and curved portions or only curved portions of thetemple arm members 12. For instance, the temple arm members 12 couldalso have a small diameter, cylindrical configuration.

The light sources 18, which may be small LEDs, are preferably mounted tothe forward end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12. By oneapproach, each light source 18 is mounted at least partially within aprojection or tubular portion 38 extending slightly outwardly from outersurface portion 40 of each temple arm member 12. The outer surfaceportion 40 preferably has a flat configuration but for the tubularportion 38 projecting therefrom, with the tubular portion 38 providing apartially outward positioning of the light source 18 relative to theflat outer surface 40 of the temple arm to position the light forforward illumination. At the same time, the projecting tubular portion38 has a small radius of curvature such as on the order of approximately2 mm that substantially conforms to that of the cylindrical portion oflens 42 of the LED 18, which is effective to avoid the size and weightincrease associated with prior lighted eyeglasses having light moduleson their temple arms. Preferably, the tubular portions 38 are formed atthe forward end portions 44 of the temple arm members 12 in the middleregion along the outer surface portion 40 between the upper and loweredges 62 and 64 of the temple arm members 12, as best seen in FIG. 5.

A forward lens 42 of the LED light source 18 is generally aligned withor extends slightly forwardly of the forwardmost end 44 a of each of thetemple arm members 12. In addition, the LED element that generates lightsimilarly is generally aligned with the temple arm member forwardmostend 44 a. By this positioning, no portion of the temple arm member 12interferes with the light cone emitted by the LED 18. Positioning theLED element and lens 42 even with or forwardly of the forwardmost end 44a of the temple arm member 12, however, still can undesirably generateglare from incident light outside the light cone of the LED 18 since theLEDs 18 are still recessed back from the forward portions of thecross-frame member 14, and in particular the lenses 21 thereof. Forinstance, such incident light that reaches the lenses 21 may berefracted or reflected into the wearer's eyes or the incident light maysimply be an annoyance and distraction to the wearer by being within thewearer's peripheral vision. In the illustrated form, the illuminatedeyewear 10 minimizes these issues by positioning the LEDs 18 adjacentthe outer surface portions 40 of the temple arm members 12, as discussedabove.

As is understood, the LEDs 18, emit a conical beam of light. In thisregard, the light cone 43 generally has the illustrated laterallyoutward opposite side edges 45, 47 that taper away from each other fromthe vertex or the LED element in the LED lens 42 so that the cone 43 hasa predetermined angle or degree of spread a between the opposite edgesthereof. For example, this light cone angle α may be between about 20degrees and about 40 degrees. A light cone center axis or centerline C1extending forwardly from the LED element divides the light cone 43 inhalf with equal angles between the axis C1 and each of the illustrated,opposite light cone edges 45, 47. In order to orient the light sources18 to emit such cones 43 of light to maximize the amount of light in theviewing or reading area forwardly of a wearer (e.g., preferably about 6to 24 inches in front of the wearer), the LEDs 18 can be cantedlaterally inwardly toward each other as shown in FIG. 4 and downwardlyrelative to the temple arm members 12 and the fore-and-aft temple axesL1, as shown in FIG. 5. Referencing FIGS. 3 and 4, the LEDs 18, and moreparticularly the light cones 43 emitted therefrom, are canted laterallyinward so that the center axis C1 of the cones extend transversely tothe temple axis L1, at an angle β1 from the temple axis L1 so that thelight cones intersect closer forwardly of the cross-frame member 14 thanif the cone axes C1 and fore-and-aft temple axes L1 were substantiallycoincident.

More particularly, the tubular portions 38 are configured so that theytaper in the forward direction toward the outer surface portion 40 ofthe temple arm members 12 so that the LEDs 18 mounted therein have thedesired inward cant, as shown in FIG. 4. With the LEDs 18 cantedinwardly, the inner edges 45 of the light cones 43 will intersect eachother at the beginning of the reading or viewing distance of the wearer,such as 6 inches forwardly of the lenses 21, without requiring LEDshaving wider light cones. As shown in FIG. 5, the tubular LED mountingportions 38 can also be configured to extend forwardly and slightlydownwardly with the forward portion 48 slightly lower than the rearwardportion 49 so that the LEDs 18 mounted therein are also oriented toextend forwardly and slightly downwardly with the central axis C1 of thelight cones 43 being canted downwardly at an angle β2 to the templefore-and-aft axis L1. In this manner, the light cones 43 emitted fromthe LEDs 18 are also canted in a downward direction relative to thetemple arm members 12 and the cross-frame member 14.

As previously mentioned and as can be seen in FIG. 3, the LEDs 18 aredisposed adjacent to the end portions 16 of the cross-frame member 14 soas to be recessed rearwardly with respect to the lenses 21 that alsocurve slightly forwardly since they are held by the cross-frame member14 that has a slight forward curvature. As a result of this arrangementand as previously discussed, incident light and glare caused thereby canbe a problem. To avoid this, the eyeglass frame 11 and preferably thefront support thereof can include blinder portions 46 laterally inwardfrom the adjacent light sources or LEDs 18 so that the blinder portions46 are arranged and configured to keep incident light from reaching theeyes of the eyeglass wearer. More specifically, the blinder portions 46each include a blinder surface 46 a that extends forwardly alongside theLEDs 18 transversely to the lateral axis L2. The blinder surfaces 46 acan extend orthogonal to the lateral axis L2. However, thisconfiguration of the blinder surfaces 46 a can interfere with the lightcones 43 emitted by the LEDs 18. In other words, with adjacent blindersurfaces 46 a that extend orthogonal to axis L2 and parallel to the foreand aft axes L1, the inner edges 45 of the light cones 43 can intersectthe blinder surfaces 46 a.

Accordingly, in the illustrated and preferred form, the lightedeyeglasses 10 avoid substantial interference with the light cones 43 byhaving the blinder portion 46 configured so that the blinder surface 46a is inclined to extend at a laterally inward cant obliquely relative tothe lateral axis L2, as will be described further hereinafter. In thismanner, the blinder surfaces 46 a extend in the same general directionas the inner edge 45 of the corresponding light cone 43 so as tominimize interference therewith thus maximizing the amount of light fromthe LEDs 18 that is utilized to illuminate the viewing area for thewearer of the eyeglasses 10.

More particularly, the blinder portions 46 are preferably formed in theouter end portions 16 of the cross-frame member 14 and each have ablinder surface 46 a with a generally semi-frustoconical configuration.In this regard, the semi-frustoconical blinder surfaces 46 a can beconstructed from a reference right cone with the surfaces 46 a truncatedso that the vertex of the reference cone is generally positioned wherethe corresponding LEDs 18 are located when the temple arm members 12 arepivoted to their open position. The truncated reference cone along whichthe blinder surfaces 46 a each extend is generally divided in half sothat the blinder surfaces 46 a open laterally outward and have a bottomnotch opening 55 sized to fit the LEDs 18, and specifically thelaterally inner half of the LED lenses 42, therein when the temple arms12 are pivoted open, as seen in FIGS. 2 and 4. In this manner, each ofthe LEDs 18 is substantially oriented at the vertex of the referencecones of its adjacent blinder portion 46 when the lighted eyeglasses 10are in their use configuration. As is apparent from the above, theblinder portions 46 are positioned adjacent to the LEDs 18 and generallylaterally inward from the LEDs 18 and extend at a laterally inwardincline generally forwardly from the LEDs 18. So configured, when thetemple arm members 12 are pivoted to the use configuration, the lenses42 of the LEDs 18 are positioned laterally adjacent to the blinderportions 46.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the reference cone along which the blinderportion surfaces 46 a extend has a conical angle or opening angle θ thatis substantially equal to or slightly larger than the light cone aemitted by the light source 18. Additionally, the blinder portionsurface 46 a can be canted in the same manner as the light cones 43 fromLEDs 18 so that the surfaces 46 a generally extend along the laterallyinner edge 45 of the light cones 43 or preferably tapering slightly awaytherefrom so as to generally avoid interfering with or intersecting thelight cones 43. To this end, the central axis C2 of each of thereference cones along which the blinder surfaces 46 a extend issubstantially coincident with the canted central axis C1 of the lightcones of the LEDs 18. In this manner, the amount of light from thepreferred canted LEDs 18 that reaches the viewing area is maximizedwhile incidental light outside the light cones is blocked from reachingthe eyes of the wearer of the lighted eyeglasses 10.

By another approach, the blinder portions 46 could be incorporated inthe temple arm members 12 rather than in the end portions 16 of thecross-frame member 14. In this form, the temple arm members 12 wouldinclude both the light sources 18 and the blinder portions 46.Accordingly, in this approach, the temple arm members 12, andspecifically the blinder portions 46 thereof, would be pivotablyconnected to the cross-frame member 14.

As described earlier, the LEDs 18 can be mounted to the temple armmembers 12, and specifically partially within the tubular portions 38,to project their light cones at the angle β2 downward with respect tothe longitudinal axis L1 of the temple arm members 12. By way of exampleand not limitation, the angle β2 can be in the range of about 2 degreesto about 10 degrees and preferably about 3 degrees to about 5 degreesfrom the longitudinal axis L1 of the temple arm members 12. In addition,the LEDs 18 can also be housed within the temple arm members 12, andspecifically the tubular portions 38, to project their light cones 43 atthe laterally inwardly canted angle β1 relative to the longitudinal axesL1 which can be in the range of about 2 degrees to about 10 degrees andpreferably about 3 degrees to about 5 degrees. Accordingly, in theillustrated and preferred form, the LEDs 18 are canted both inwardly anddownwardly relative to the L1 axis. As such, in the illustrated form,the tubular members 38 are also inclined or canted relative to thetemple arm members 12 and the flat temple outer surface portion 40, aspreviously described. For instance, distal end portion 49 of the tubularportion 38 extends further from the outer surface portion 40 of thetemple arm member 12 with the tubular portion 38 generally beinginclined toward the outer surface portion 40 as the tubular portion 38extends forwardly along the temple arm member 12 to the forward end 48thereof. This configuration generates the inwardly directed cant β1 ofthe light source 18 while also positioning the lens 42 of the LED 18adjacent the blinder portions 46 when the temple arm members 12 are inthe use configuration. The LEDs 18, however, can be canted inward ordownward at different angles to direct the light emitted by the LEDs 18to other areas forwardly of the wearer. If desired, the LEDs 18 may alsobe adjustable so that the cant of the LEDs 18 can be user selected.

Similarly, the blinder portions 46 can be configured to substantiallymatch the orientation of the light cones 43 emitted from the LEDs 18with the lighted eyeglasses 10 in the use configuration. For thispurpose and as previously described, the central axis C2 of thereference cones along which the semi-frustoconical blinder surfaces 46 aextend may also extend at a laterally inward and downward cant similarto the cants β1 and β2 of the light cones 43 of the LEDs 18. For exampleand as illustrated in FIG. 4, central axes C2 of the blinder portions 46is canted approximately the same degree inwardly and/or downwardly asthe central axes C1 of the light cones 43 of the LEDs 18 relative to thetemple arm axes L1 with the temple arm members 12 pivoted to their openconfiguration. In addition, the incline or cant of the laterallyinnermost edge 59 of the semi-frustoconical blinder surface 46 a of theblinder portion 46 is preferably the same as or slightly greater thanthe corresponding laterally innermost edge of the cone of light emittedfrom the LED 18; thus, the blinder portions 46 do not interfere with,constrict, or alter the shape of the light cones emitted by the LEDs 18.By one approach, the conical or opening angle θ of the reference conesfor the blinder portions 46 is about 2 degrees to about 5 degrees widerthan the corresponding angle α of the LED light cones. For example, ifthe cone of light has a conical angle of about 10 degrees to about 40degrees total or about 5 degrees to about 20 degrees on either side ofthe light source centerline C1, then the conical angle θ for the blindersurface 46 a can range from about 10 degrees to about 15 degrees oneither side of the axis C2 for a 20 degree light cone up to about 20degrees to about 25 degrees on either side of the axis C2 for a 40degree light cone.

As shown and described above, only the tubular portion 38 projectslaterally beyond the outer surface portion 40 of the temple arm members12. Accordingly, there are no electrical components, access openings,coverings, or the like, mounted to or formed in the outer surfaceportion 40 of the temple arm members 12. Similarly, the cross-framemember 14 has a substantially typical and ordinary eyeglass appearance,except for the inclusion of the blinder portions 46. This configurationprovides the illuminated eyewear 10 with visible surfaces that aresimilar to non-lighted eyeglasses and frames thereof, which creates apleasing aesthetic, while also keeping the light sources 18 from shininginto the eyes of the wearer or being in the peripheral vision of thewearer.

Referring now to FIGS. 6-8, an electrical system 50 is operable toprovide power to the LEDs 18. In order to preserve the outwardly visibleaesthetics of the illuminated eyewear 10, as described above, thecomponents of the electrical system 50 are either positioned on oraccessible through an inner surface portion 52 of each temple arm member12. Positioning the electrical system components at the inner surfaceportion 52 effectively hides them from view while the illuminatedeyewear 10 is worn. The inner surface portions 52 can have asubstantially flat configuration and are arranged so as to face eachother when the temple arm members 12 are shifted to the openconfiguration. In the illustrated form, the inner surface portion 52includes offset portions 51 and 53 with portion 53 being slightly raisedrelative to adjacent portion 51. The slightly raised portion 53 ispreferably adjacent the cross-frame member 14 so as to correspond to thepreviously described laterally thicker, forward end portions 44 of thetemple arm members 12, but can also be positioned in the intermediateportion 34 or the distal portion 36 of the temple arm member 12.Preferably, the majority of the components of the electrical system 50are disposed between the inner surface portion 52 and the outer surfaceportion 40 of the enlarged end portion 44 of the temple 12. Soconfigured, no components of the electronic assembly 50 are visible onthe outer surface portion 40 of the temple arm members 12, no componentsof the electronic assembly 50 are in the cross-frame member 14, and nocomponents of the electronic assembly 50 span the hinge 30.

In the preferred and illustrated form, a compartment 54 is recessed inthe inner surface portion 53 for housing components of the electricalsystem 50. The electrical system components can include a switch orswitch device 56, a power source 66, and the electrical connectionsthereof. As illustrated, the switch device 56 is a slide switch forturning the LEDs on and off, however, other types of switches can beutilized, such as a toggle, a pushbutton, or a touch switch. A rotaryswitch could also be utilized which could be used to control the powerlevel supplied to the LEDs to provide a dimmer switch function. As shownin FIG. 8, the switch device 56 is connected to one of the LED contactsor leads 57 and also to the power source 66.

Preferably, the switch device 56 is mounted to the temple inner surfaceportion 52 adjacent to the hinge 30. In particular, the hinge 30pivotably connects a front temple hinge part 58 to an outer or edgecross-frame member hinge part 60 with a pivot pin 61. In order topreserve space and minimize the length of the space taken up by theelectrical system 50 along the temple arm members 12, the switch 56, andparticularly the slide actuator 56 a thereof is preferably disposed invertical, overlying relation with the temple hinge part 58 of the hinge30. As can be seen in FIGS. 6-8, the switch actuator 56 a is positionedabove the hinge 30 adjacent the end surface 44 of the temple arm member12 and adjacent an upper surface 62 of the temple arm member 12.Accordingly, the temple part 58 of the hinge 30 is adjacent a lowersurface 64 of the temple arm member 12. So configured, the switchactuator 56 a is positioned to be manipulated by an index finger of thewearer to control power to the light sources 18. Alternatively, theswitch 56 can be positioned adjacent the lower surface 64 of the templearm member 12 and the temple part 58 of the hinge 30 can be positionedabove the switch actuator 56 a and adjacent the upper surface 62 of thetemple arm member 12.

The power source compartment 54 is configured to have a narrow width tokeep the lateral thickness of the temple arm members 12, andspecifically the forward end portions 44 to a minimum, as previouslydiscussed. The compartment 54 is formed between the inner surfaceportion 52 and the outer surface portion 40. This narrow widthcompartment 54 enables the temple arm members 12 to maintain arelatively thin shape, which can provide a more comfortable fit on awearer's head than thicker temple arm members. The power sourcecompartment 54 is further positioned adjacent to the temple part 58 ofthe hinge 30 and can be partially recessed into the temple arm member12. In the illustrated form, the compartment 54 includes upstanding wallportions 65, which project away from the offset inner surface portion 51to space the raised inner surface portion 53 therefrom. The wallportions 65 are sized and configured to provide the compartment 54 witha depth sufficient to house a substantially flat battery, such as adisc-shaped coin cell battery 66. Preferably, there are at least a pairof batteries to power the LEDs 18, such as a pair of disc-shaped coincell batteries 66, in a longitudinal and non-overlapping, side-by-siderelation, so that main flat surfaces 66 a, 66 b of the batteries 66 facethe flat inner surface portion 52 and the flat outer surface portion 40of the temple arm members 12. The wall portions 65 include curved wallportions 65 a for forming subcompartments 68 that provide the coin cellbatteries 66 with a snug fit therein. The compartment 54 can further bedivided to include subcompartment 67 sized to partially receive theswitch device 56, such as lower electrical components of switch device56 that electrically couple to the batteries 66 and the LED 18. Theswitch subcompartment 67 has a generally small, square configuration andis adjacent one side of the upper portion of the forwardmost batterysubcompartment 68. So configured, the power source compartment 54substantially hides the batteries 66 and the switch device 56 from viewwhen the illuminated eyewear 10 is worn.

When the batteries 66 are in the longitudinal side-by-side relationshown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the compartment 54 is divided into twosubcompartments or bays 68, each formed by the rim or curved wallportions 65 and configured to support and laterally enclose a single oneof the coin cell batteries 66. The far or rearwardmost bay 68 includes arecess or well 70 in a substantially flat bottom surface 71 thereofconfigured to snugly fit a contact 72, such as a tab-shaped bladeconnector, coupled to the switch device 56. Accordingly, the well 70preferably is of a generally rectangular configuration. In addition, thecontact 72 includes a bent vertical contact wall portion 74 which fitsinto a gap in one of the curved wall portions 65, as shown in FIG. 8.The contact 72 is electrically connected to the switch device 56, whichas described above, is attached to the contact 57 of the LED 18.Specifically, a wire 76 extends from the contact 72 to the switch device56 by being secured within a space provided between portions of the rim65 above or below the other bay 68, preferably depending on thepositioning of the switch device 56. The wire 76 can be at leastpartially covered by an insulating material or jacket along at least aportion of its length. As illustrated, the contact 72 is configured tocontact the cathode of the battery 66. The other bay 68 may bepositioned adjacent to the switch device 56 and include a recess 78 in asubstantially flat bottom surface 79 thereof configured to support asecond contact 80 of the light source 18. As illustrated, the contact 80is one of the elongate leads stemming from the light source 18 and isreceived in an elongate narrow or thin recess or well 78 to beconfigured to contact the anode of the other battery 66. The wells 70and 78 allow the corresponding contacts 72 and 80 to be received in thebattery subcompartments while the facing surface of the batteries 66 isin contact therewith and can rest or be supported by the substantiallyflat bottom surfaces 71 and 79 of the subcompartments 68. So configured,the cathode of one battery 66 is coupled to the switch 56, which iscoupled to the LED 18, and the anode of the other battery 66 is coupleddirectly to the LED 18. This configuration allows the switch device 56to control power to the LED 18 to turn it on and off. While one specificconfiguration of the contacts 72, 80 and batteries 66 are illustrated,the components may also be reversed if so desired.

Further, the switch device 56, rather than having two positionscorresponding to “on” and “off” positions as described above, caninclude three positions of the slide actuator 56 a with one positionbeing an “off” position, another position being a “low, on” position andthe last position being a “high, on” position so that the switch device56 can control the lighting power generated by the LED 18 to provideeither lower intensity lighting or higher intensity lighting based onthe corresponding “on” position of the actuator 56 a. Referencing FIGS.9 and 10, the switch device 56 has the actuator 56 a slidably mounted toswitch housing 300 which has four pins 302, 304, 306, and 308 dependingtherefrom. The outer pins 302 and 308 are electrically connected to theLED 18 via contact 57 with pin 308 including a resistor in theelectrical path between it and the LED 18 to reduce power to the LED 18over that supplied via pin 302. Pin 304 is electrically connected to thepower source 66 and specifically the cathode of battery power source 66received in the far bay 68 via tab contact 72 and wire 76. The pin 306is not electrically connected to either the LED 18 or the power source66. In each actuator position, two of the pins 302-308 are electricallyconnected by a conductive bar 310 shifted by the switch actuator 56 a.Thus, the high brightness or light intensity position of the switchactuator 56 a is the left endmost position in FIG. 9 and is depicted asposition “A” in FIG. 10 with LED pin 302 and power pin 304 electricallyconnected via switch bar 310. The off position is the intermediate ormiddle position of the switch actuator 56 a in the left-to-rightdirection shown in phantom in FIG. 9 and is depicted as position “B” inFIG. 10 with power pin 304 connected to electrically inactive pin 306.The low brightness or light intensity position of the switch actuator 56a is the right endmost position of the switch actuator 56 a shown inphantom in FIG. 9 and is depicted as position “C” in FIG. 10 with powerpin 304 and LED pin 308 electrically connected via switch bar 310.

Alternatively, the three positions of the switch actuator 56 a can be anend “on” position, an intermediate “off” position, and an opposite end“temporary on” position. In this form, the pins 302-308 would beelectrically connected to the LED 18 or power source 66 or inactive asin the above-described 3-position switch device 56, although no resistoris needed in the electrical path between LED pin 308 and LED 18. Theswitch device 56 in this form allows the user to slide the actuator 56 ato the left endmost position corresponding to the “temporary on”position with the corresponding LED 18 only providing light for as longas the switch actuator 56 a is maintained in the “temporary on”position. In this regard, the switch actuator 56 a can include a biasingmechanism such as in the form of compression spring 312 mounted betweenswitch housing wall 314 and switch actuator base 316 with the spring 312operable to urge the actuator 56 a back to the intermediate “off”position when it is slid toward the “temporary on” position. Thus, forexample, the “temporary on” position allows a potential purchaser of thelighted glasses 10 to try the lights via sliding and holding the switchactuator 56 a to the “temporary on” position only for as long as neededfor their purchasing decision. Once they are satisfied with theirtesting of the lighting function, they can release the switch actuator56 a which will then automatically return to the “off” position due tothe bias force provided thereto by the spring 312. This avoids the needfor using the “on” position for this purpose which requires the user toslide the switch actuator 56 a back to the “off” position and which ifnot done undesirably reduces or can eventually use up the power in thebattery power source 66. Of course, the “temporary on” position alsoprovides the owner of the glasses 10 a similar advantage. Manifestly, nosuch spring would be provided for the earlier described 3-positionswitch device 56 without a “temporary on” position. In addition, itshould be understood that the specific arrangement of pins and switchpositions for the 3-position switch devices 56 can be varied from thatdescribed herein.

By one approach, the raised portion 53 of the inner surface portion 52includes a removable cover 82, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, configured tosecurely fit over the compartment 54 to secure the batteries 66 within.The cover 82 may optionally include biased members or springs on aninner surface thereof to apply outward pressure on the batteries 66, sothe batteries 66 are held against the contacts 72, 80. The cover 82 isremovably secured to the compartment 54 by a tongue and groove mechanismsecuring depending sides and the distal end of the cover 82 using edgesor slots provided in the rim 65. Other suitable securing mechanisms canalso be utilized. In the illustrated form, the cover 82 is formed frommetal (as opposed to the preferred plastic of the eyeglasses and templeportions thereof) in order to limit the thickness of the temple armmember 12. If the cover 82 were fabricated of a plastic similar to thetemple arm 12, the cover 82 would have an increased thickness, whichwould detract from the thin configuration of the temple arm members 12.

As illustrated and described, the temple arm members 12 include all thecomponents necessary to illuminate an area forwardly of the wearer,including the LEDs 18 and the electrical system 50 therefor.Accordingly, this configuration allows the cross-frame member 14 to beeasily interchangeable because no electrical components span the pivotconnections and/or the hinge 30 between the temple arm members 12 andthe cross-frame member 14. Similarly, no electrical components areincluded in the cross-frame member 14, avoiding the performance problemsassociated with prior hinge switches. In addition to this, theelectrical system 50 has its components disposed positioned entirely onor recesses in the inner surface portion 52 of each temple arm member12, and the electrical components do not project above the upper surface62 or below the lower surface 64 of the temple arm member 12. Thisconfiguration not only substantially hides the components of theelectrical system 50 from view when the illuminated eyewear 10 is worn,but it also protects the electrical components from damage when thelighted eyeglasses 10 are in the folded, storage configuration.

As illustrated in FIG. 11, a detailed view of a modified orlight-concentrating LED 125 is shown that may be employed with thelighted eyeglasses 10. The light-concentrating LED 125 is configured tooptimize the light output therefrom and minimize wasted light.Alternatively, or in addition to the above, the light-concentrating LED125 is configured to reduce the amount of stray light such as light thatcan cause unwanted glare or the like. The light-concentrating LED 125may be any common LED that includes a housing or lens 200 of a typicaltranslucent or transparent housing, a LED chip or diode 202 forillumination, and electrical leads 210, such as an anode and cathodeleads, extending therefrom. However, the light-concentrating LED 125also includes at least one material or coating 212 and, preferably, asecond material or coating 214 on a predetermined portion of the lens200, such as along a portion of an outside surface thereof. Thematerials 212 and 214 are advantageous because they preferably optimizeor concentrate the light output from the light-concentrating LED 125 andminimize stray or otherwise wasted light by providing a modified lightcone 129 that emanates from the light-concentrating LED 125.

The first material 212 may have a reflective surface and is applied to alower portion or an underside of an outer surface of thelight-transmissive lens 200 of the light-concentrating LED 25. Thematerial 212 is designed to optimize and/or concentrate the light outputthat is projected outwardly from the LED lens body 200 in apredetermined direction or light cone. As shown by the modified lightcone 29, the first material 212 concentrates the light emanated from theLED chip 202 in a generally axial direction outwardly from thelight-concentrating LED 25 and also generally upwardly away from thefirst material 212. The first material 212 may be a silver or nickelcoating or a lithium silver plating or nickel lithium planting; however,other reflective coatings are also suitable.

With use of the first material 212, the normal light cone projected fromthe LED is reduced in size by approximately 50 percent, and thus theamount of light in the modified cone 29 is doubled or increased byapproximately 100 percent over the light concentration in a normal lightcone that is twice as large as the cone 129. While the first material212 is illustrated in FIG. 9 on the lower or bottom portion of thelight-concentrating LED 125, it may also be included on other portionsof the light-concentrating LED 125 as desired depending on how the lightfrom the light-concentrating LED 125 needs to be focused or directed.

The second material 214 is a black or other dark colored coating forblocking the light from being emanated in a particular direction and maybe any opaque coating applied to the light-concentrating LED 125. Asillustrated in FIG. 9, the second material 214 is preferably applied tothe light-concentrating LED 125 beneath the first material 212 andtherefore, also on a lower portion of the light-concentrating LED 125.Thus, in the illustrated form, the first reflective material 212 isbetween the LED lens 200 and the second material 214. Alternatively, thecoatings 212 and 214 could be applied on the inner surface of the LEDlens with the reflective coating 212 being applied on the underlyingcoating 214 which is applied to the lens surface. As a result, when thelight-concentrating LED 125 is installed on the hat 100 as describedabove, the material 214 minimizes the glare from the LEDs in thewearer's eyes because the second material 214 substantially preventslight from being projected in a downward direction below the brim 116directly in front of the wear's eyes. In this regard, it is preferredthat no matter where the first coating 212 is applied to thelight-concentrating LED 125 to concentrate and direct the light, thesecond material 214 is preferably applied in such a manner that when thelight-concentrating LED 25 is installed on the hat 100, the secondmaterial 212 is in an orientation to block the light that may beemanated from the LED towards the wearer's eyes. In other words, thesecond material 212 will be on the lens 200 so that it is between theLED chip 202 and the eyes of the hat wearer.

While the first and second materials 212 and 214 are illustrated asextending the entire axial length of the LED lens 200, depending on themodified light cone 29 desired, the materials 212 and 214 may also onlyextend a portion of the axial length of the LED lens 200 or extend invarying lengths on the lens 200. Preferably, the materials 212 and 214will extend at least from the electrical connections 210 past the LEDchip 202. Moreover, while the light-concentrating LED 25 has beendescribed with both coatings 212 and 214, the light-concentrating LED 25may also incorporate each coating separately depending on the lightoutput, direction, and/or concentration desired.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 11A, the light-concentrating LED 25 mayhave a reflective tape 220 wrapped therearound instead of or incombination with the materials 212 and 214, or just the light blockingmaterial 214. For instance, the tape 220 may be wrapped radially aroundthe light-concentrating LED 25 such that the tape 220 circumscribes thelens 200 and extends axially generally parallel to the electrical leads210 to the LED chip or diode 202. However, the tape 220 may also extenddifferent axial lengths on the light-concentrating LED 25 depending onthe light cone 29 desired. For example, if a more concentrated or narrowlight beam is desired, then the tape 220 may extend axially from theelectrical leads 210 beyond the diode 202 so a more narrow orconcentrated light cone 29 is formed. On the other hand, if a morediffuse or wide beam is desired, then the tape 220 may extend only ashort distance and be axially spaced rearward from the diode 202 so awider light cone 29 is formed. Manifestly, if there is a reflectivelayer only on one side of the tape 220, then the reflective layer on thetape 220 is to be facing inward towards the diode 202 so that thereflective tape 220 will concentrate the light being emanated from thediode 202 and reflect any stray light inwardly into the desired lightcone 29.

Referring now to FIGS. 12-25, another hands-free lighting embodiment isillustrated, which includes lighted eyeglass frames 500. In general, thelighted eyeglass frame 500 described herein includes a light sourcemounted onto a portion of the frame for directing light forwardly of thewearer together with a variety of different options to energize thelight source.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 12-15, a light module 518 with alight source or LED 524 is mounted to a collapsible eyeglass frameassembly 500 to form the lighted eyeglasses. The eyeglass frame assembly500 is configured as a typical eyeglass frame assembly having a pair ofspaced temples or arms 502, and a cross-frame member 504 extendingtherebetween and pivotally connected to each of the temples at eitherend thereof. The cross-frame member 504 includes an appropriate bridgestructure intermediate the ends so that the frame 500 may rest on thebridge of an individual's nose (FIG. 14). The temples 502 extendrearwardly from the spaced ends of the cross-frame member 504 and mayalso include a downwardly projecting ear portion 506 so that the end 505of each temple 502 may conform to or extend around an individual's ear(FIG. 12A). Alternatively, the temples may extend generally straightback from the cross-frame member 504 without the ear portion 506 (FIG.17 a). The frame assembly 500 shown in FIGS. 12-15 includes both aretracted position and an extended position.

In the retracted position or state the cross-frame member 504 andtemples 502 are preferably collapsed such that the frame 500 is in amore compact form for ease of storage and protection (FIGS. 12B, 13B,15A, and 15B). As further discussed below, the cross-frame member 504and each temple 502 separately retract to form the compact structure. Inthe retracted state, the cross-frame member 504 and temples 502 aregenerally protected by the light module 518 because, as furtherdescribed below, the cross-frame member 504 and temples 502 arepartially or substantially covered by the light module 518. In otherwords, the arms 502 will generally not project very far if at all beyondthe light modules, and only a small section of the cross-member 504 willbe exposed to extend between the modules 518, as can be seen in FIGS.15A and 1513. Furthermore, in the retracted position, the lighted frameassembly 500 is sufficiently compact to be used as a mini-flashlight. Inthe retracted position, the modules 524 generally form a double-moduleLED flashlight, as shown in FIG. 15B.

The illustrated lighted eyeglasses 500 include the light modules 518mounted to each of the temples 502. The LEDs 524 are configured toprovide illumination forwardly of the eyeglasses 500 within the field ofview of a wearer. To this end, the light module 518 or the LEDs 524 maybe canted inwardly and/or downwardly, such as about 5 degrees, toprovide a light beam that is more focused into a wearer's field-of-view.Canting the LEDs in their respective housings can be done as describedin Applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 6,612,696, which is incorporated as ifreproduced in its entirety herein. Further, the light beam is providedmore directly in the wearer's field of view by being angled inwardly anddownwardly relative to the frame temples 502. If the light modules 518or LEDs 524 are canted in such a manner, it should not be necessary tomanually pivot or cant the light to direct the illumination.

More specifically, the light module 518 has the LED 524 protrudingtherefrom for emanating light therefrom. The modules 518 are mounted toeach of the temples 502. The module 518 preferably houses the componentsneeded to illuminate the LEDs 524. For instance, the module 518 has aswitch that includes an actuator portion 517 that projects through anelongated slot 519. The actuator portion 517 is designed such that auser's thumb or finger can quickly and easily engage the actuatorportion 517 to push or pull the switch for sliding in either one of twodirections to turn the light module 518 on and off. The elongated slot119 is sized such that the switch actuator can be moved only a presetdistance, thereby enabling the on and off functions to be accomplishedwith a minimum of motion. When the switch is moved to the “on” position,batteries that are internally housed in the light module 518 energizethe LED 524. Similarly, when the switch is moved to the “off” position,the connection between the batteries and the LED 524 is broken and theLED 524 is turned off. In an exemplary form, the module 518 may besimilar to the light modules illustrated and described in the previouslyincorporated '696 patent. As illustrated, the modules 518 may beintegrally formed with the temples 502, but the modules 518 may also beseparately mounted to the temples 502 with fasteners or the like as inthe '696 patent.

As mentioned above, the eyeglass frame 500 includes both retracted andextended states. In this regard, each of the temples 502 may includeinterconnected segments or members 502 a and 502 b that can sliderelative to each other so that the temple 502 may be shifted between aretracted position (FIGS. 12B and 13B) and an extended position (FIGS.12A and 13A). Similarly, the cross-frame member 504 also preferablyincludes interconnected segments or members 504 a, 504 b, 504 c, and 504d that retract and extend in a similar manner (FIGS. 14 and 15). Thesegments of the temples and cross frame member can also telescope toextend and retract with one of the segments having a tubular or c-shapedstructure so that the connected segments can slide in and out therefrom.While the cross-frame member 504 and temple 502 are illustrated withspecific number of segments, more or less segments may also be useddepending on the size and strength of the frames desired.

More specifically, in the retracted condition of the temples 502, thetemple segment 502 b retracts or slides relative to temple segment 502 aeither into a temple receiving compartment in the module 518 oralongside the module 518 at an outer surface thereof so that at least aportion of each of the temple segments are superimposed over each otherand overlap the module 518. As illustrated in FIG. 12B, in the retractedcondition, the ear portion 506 extends beyond the module 518. However,the projecting ear portion 506 is much smaller than the fully extendedtemple arm 502. The extent to which the temple arm 502 projects beyondthe module when the arm is retracted may vary depending on the size andangle of ear portion 506 as it is not uncommon for the configuration ofthe ear portion 506 to vary based on the comfort needs of the individualwearer. Alternatively, if the temples 502 do not have a speciallycontoured ear portion 506, but a straight temple portion, thensubstantially the entire temple 502 may overlap the module 518 whenretracted. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 13B, if the templeportion 502 is generally straight, then the temple segments 502 a and502 b may retract into a position such that each segment 502 a and 502 bsubstantially overlaps each other and the module 518 but for a smallprojecting end section 505 of the temple. In this configuration,substantially the entire temple 502 is protected from damage in theretracted state by the module 518 because the temple 502 is retractedinto or alongside the module 518. The larger width size of the module518 transverse to the length of the temple arm 502 protects theelongate, thin temple portion 502.

In the extended state of the temples 502, each of the segments 502 a and502 b are extended outwardly from the module 518 so as to formtraditional temples of common eyeglasses (FIGS. 12A, 13A, and 14). Asillustrated in FIG. 13C, the temple segments 502 a and 502 b may includea releasable locking structure 508 therebetween such that the extendedtemple segments may be held in their extended and retracted positions.That is, the locking structure 508 may include, for example, a retainingsleeve member 508 a through which the temple segments 502 a and 502 bextend, a boss or other protrusion 508 b on an end of one of the templesegments and a corresponding detent or groove 508 c on an adjacent endof the other temple segment that engage and register so that theprotrusion 508 b seats in the groove 508 c upon the segments reaching apredetermined, extended position relative to each other to releasablyhold the temple segments in the extended state. The locking structure508 may also include stop members 508 d on ends of each segment thatinterfere with the retaining member 508 a to avoid having the templearms separate from each other. In addition, the end 505 of the templearm 502 b may also include a detent 508 c to engage the protrusion 508 bwhen the temple arm 502 b is retracted. Manifestly, the locations of theprotrusions 508 b and detent grooves 508 c can be reversed, or a pair ofprotrusions 508 b can be provided on one of the arm segments with asingle groove 508 c formed in the other arm segment.

Referring now to FIGS. 14, 15A, and 15B, as mentioned above, thecross-frame member 504 may also include a retracted and extendedposition. As illustrated in FIG. 14, the frame 500 is shown in theextended position resembling a traditional eyeglass frame. FIGS. 15A and15B illustrate the cross-frame member 504 and temple arms 502 of theframe 500 in the retracted position with FIG. 15A showing the retractedtemple arms 502 having arcuate ear portions 506 (FIG. 12B) and FIG. 15Bshowing the retracted, straight temple arms 502 (FIG. 13B).

To achieve the retracted position of the cross-frame member 504, a userslides the outer segments 504 a and 504 d of the cross-frame member 504inwardly toward each other such that the temples 502 and the attached orintegrated modules 518 are moved laterally toward each other. It can beappreciated that the cross-member frame 504 can be retracted with thetemples 502 either in the retracted or in the extended positions. Inorder to retract and extend, the cross-frame member 504 also includesconnected segments or members 504 a, 504 b, 504 c, and 504 d. A userslides the segments inwardly such that segment 504 a and 504 b overlapto retract one side of the frame 500 and the segments 504 c and 504 doverlap to retract the other side of the frame 500.

The cross-frame member 504 is extended in a reverse manner by sliding orextending the segments 504 a and 504 d outwardly. As with the temples502, the cross-frame member 504 preferably includes a similar lockingstructure 508 so that the cross-frame member 504 can be releasably heldin either the retracted or extended positions.

When both the cross-frame member 504 and each temple 502 are retracted,the frame 500 is significantly more compact than the traditionaleyeglass frame as best shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B. Preferably, the fullyretracted frame 500 is about as wide as the depth of two modules 518 andabout as long as each module 518. As previously stated, a small section505 of the ear portion 506 may extend beyond the modules 518 in theretracted state so that, if the temple arm is retracted into the lighthousing 518, the projecting section 505 allows the user to pull thetemple arm out of the housing back to its extended position. In thiscompact state, the frame 500 is easily placed in a pocket, bag, or purseuntil hands-free lighting is needed. The frame 500 may be expanded to beused as hands free lighting as previously described or used in thecompact condition as a compact hand-held flashlight. Moreover, in thiscompact state, the frame 500 is protected from damage as the frame doesnot have elongate members that are easily bent or broken. As previouslydescribed, when the frame 500 is in the retracted state, the cross-framemember 504 and temple arms 502 are slid either into or alongside thelight module 518. Therefore, in this state, the larger module 518protects the more narrow frame portions 502 and 504 from being damagedwhen in a pocket or purse, for instance.

The eyeglass frame 500 may also include lenses similar to traditionalglasses. For example, the frame 500 may include reading lenses,prescription lenses, protective or safety lenses, magnifying lenses,clear or non-refractive lenses, or the like. If included, the lenseswould generally depend from the cross-member frame 504 or thecross-frame member 504 could also include portions that encircle thelenses. The lenses may have a pivot connection to the frame where thecross-frame member 504 and the temple arms 502 are pivotally connected.In this manner, the edge of the lenses opposite the pivot connection(i.e., near the bridge) may pivot inwardly from the cross-frame member504 to the temple arms 502 to facilitate the retraction of thecross-frame member 504. On the other hand, a top edge of the lenses maybe pivotally mounted to the cross-frame member 504 so that when theframe is in a retracted condition, the lenses may be pivoted up to theretracted frame structure. In such configurations, the frame 500, evenwith optional lenses, may be retracted into a compact form.Alternatively, the eyeglass frame 500 may be devoid of such lenses sothat the frame 500 is configured simply to provide a form of headgearthat provides for hands-free lighting.

Referring to FIGS. 16-23, various alternative temple portions 602 areillustrated for the frame assembly 500. Herein, these alternative templeportions generally do not retract, but have different configurations andcan include rechargeable batteries 600 and recharging contacts 603. Asshown, the recharging contacts 603 include a positive contact 603 a anda negative contact 603 b, which may be in separate temple portions 602(FIG. 24) or both in the same temple portion 602 (FIG. 23). The chargingcontacts 603 are for being electrically connected to correspondingcontacts 654 of a separate battery charger.

The temple portions 602 include a light source 604, preferably an LED,housed within an opening or hollowed portion of the temple frame 610 andwhich protrude axially outward from the forward end 602 a of the templeframe such that a light beam would be directed forwardly of the wearer,as previously described. The lights 604 may also be angled or cantedinwardly or downwardly to provide a light beam more directly in thewearer's field of view. For example, the LED may tilt down about 5degrees. The alternative temples 602 illustrated in FIGS. 16-23generally can provide a more compact illumination device when worn thanpreviously described with the light module 518 because the components toenergize the light 604 are contained or integrated into the templeportions 602 rather than being within a separate module 518.

More specifically, FIGS. 16 and 17 illustrate two batteries 600 spacedlongitudinally in the fore and aft direction that are housed internallyin a forward portion 602 b of the temple 602 adjacent pivot member 606.To contain the batteries, the forward portion 602 b of the temple arm isenlarged in a direction transverse to its length and to the cross-framemember 504 with the lighted frames in their unfolded configuration foruse. The forward portion 602 b has a tapered configuration along itslength. Also, the forward portion 602 b is thicker than the narrowerremainder or rear portion 602 d of the temple arm with a shoulder 602 cprovided therebetween. The batteries 600 are in electrical communicationwith the recharging contact 603 at a distal end 605 of an ear portion608 of the temple arm 602. As will be further described below, therecharging contacts 603 cooperate with contacts 654 of a separatebattery charging module or unit 650. FIGS. 18 and 19 illustrate asimilar battery arrangement, but show a temple 602 having a modifiedcontour to house the longitudinally spaced batteries 600. Rather than asmooth taper, the forward portion of the arm has a rectangularconfiguration for receiving the batteries 600 therein.

FIGS. 20 and 21 illustrate an overlapping battery configuration wherethe batteries 600 are stacked in a side-by-side arrangement. In thisarrangement, the temple frame or housing 610 need not be as long in thelongitudinal direction as with the previous temple arms, but is wider orthicker in the lateral direction transverse to the for and aftlongitudinal direction to accommodate the stacked batteries 600.

FIGS. 22 and 23 illustrate another modified temple 602 that houses thebatteries 600 within the rear ear portion 606, preferably in alongitudinally spaced arrangement to keep the width or thickness of theear portion to a minimum. In this embodiment, the batteries 600 areclosely positioned to the recharging contacts 603 to keep the length ofthe electrical connections therebetween to a minimum. Herein, thepositive charging contact 603 a and negative charging contact 603 b areboth disposed at the distal end 605 of the same temple portion 602. Suchcombined configuration allows a more compact battery charger becauseonly one temple 602 is required to connect to the battery charger.

Referring to FIG. 24, the eyeglass frame 500 is illustrated with themodified temple portions 602 being connected to a stand-alone batterycharger 650 with the positive contact 603 a and negative contact 603 bshown in separate temple arms 602. To charge the batteries 600 in thebattery charger 650, the temple arms 602 are preferably pivoted inwardlytoward the cross-frame member to fold the frame 500 into a retractedcondition, the distal ends 605 of each temple arm 602 are then connectedto a receiving base member 652, which may be included on a stand alonecharger. Alternatively, the receiving base member 652 may be integratedwithin an eyeglass frame case. The battery charger 650 is plugged into a110 volt wall outlet. The base member 652 has recharging contacts 654that correspond with the recharging contacts 603 on the eyeglass frametemples 602, but have an opposite polarity. Therefore, when inserted inthe battery charger 650, the batteries 600 are in electricalcommunication with a power source such that the batteries 600 maycharged. Alternatively, the battery charger 650 may be configured toaccept the eyeglass frame 500 with the temple arms 602 in an unfoldedposition, or may have a more compact configuration as previouslymentioned, such as when only one temple arm 602 has both chargingcontacts 603 a and 603 b thereon.

Referring to FIG. 25, a modified placement of the rechargeable batteries600 is illustrated on an alternative frame 500. In this embodiment, apower module or battery pack 750 is connected or attached to a lanyard772 that is joined to the distal ends 705 of more traditional templearms 702 (i.e., without included batteries). The lanyard 772 is aflexible member that joins each distal end 705 of the temple arms 702and also functions a retaining member to hold the frames 500 around awearer's neck when not in use. Generally, the lanyard 772 will be drapedabout the wearer's neck and upper back. The alternative frame 500 inFIG. 27 also includes lights 704, either in the frame as shown or in aseparate module, that are in electrical communication with the batterypack 750 through the lanyard 772 and temple arms 702. In this regard,the temple arms 702 and lanyard 772 can have a hollow configuration toallow for electrical leads to be run through each.

The battery pack or module 750 houses the rechargeable batteries 600 andreleasably mounts into a receiving port 774 attached to the lanyard 772.Generally, the port 774 may be centrally located between the ends ofeach temple portion 705 on the lanyard 772 because such an intermediateposition along the length of the lanyard 772 provides balance to thelanyard 772 when worn. Therefore, in such central location, the pack ormodule 750 would comfortably rest on the back of a wearer as the lanyard772 hangs down onto the shoulders and back during use. However, otherlocations on the lanyard are also acceptable. The receiving port 774includes contacts 774 a and 774 b that, when the battery pack or module750 is snugly and captively received in the port 774, are in electricalcommunication with the contacts 603 a and 603 b on the battery pack ormodule 750 to provided electrical power from the batteries to the lights704.

To recharge the batteries 600, the pack or module 750 may be removedfrom the port 774 and plugged into a separate battery charger or powersource (not shown). In this regard, the positive and negative contacts603 a and 603 b mate with similar contacts in the battery charger.Alternatively, the batteries 600 of the pack or module 750 may becharged while still mounted to the port 774 such as by the provision ofseparate recharging contacts (not shown).

Housing the batteries 600 in the pack or module 750 that is electricallyjoined to the frame 500 through the lanyard 772 is advantageous in thatthe batteries 600 are contained in a separate member, such as the powermodule 750, that does not affect the contour of the temple arms 702.Accordingly, the temple arm 702 may be a more traditional, straighttemple portion rather than the temple arms 602 contoured to contact thebatteries 600 as shown in FIGS. 16-23 as generally only the electricalwiring is included therein.

Referring to FIGS. 26-29, and an alternative LED assembly 3010 isillustrated that includes an LED 3012 and a covering 3014. The LED 3012includes a lens 3016 and two spaced electrical leads 3018 a and 3018 b.The lens 3016 is formed from a molded plastic with a generallycylindrical portion 3016 a and a dome portion 3016 b extending about adistal end of the lens 3016. Within the cylindrical portion 3016 a, theLED includes a diode, illumination chip, or other light source 3016 c.The covering 3014 includes a first portion 3014 a surrounding at least aportion of the lens 3016 and a second portion 3014 b surrounding atleast a portion of the leads 3018 a and 3018 b. With such configuration,the covering 3014 provides support to the LED leads and, preferably,modifies the light beam generated by the LED 3012.

More specifically, the first covering portion 3014 a extends around aportion of the LED lens 3016, such as the lens cylindrical portion 3016a and therefore, allows the LED 3012 to function similar to thepreviously described light concentrating LED 25 (FIGS. 11 and 11A) tofocus or minimize stray light emissions. That is, the covering 3014 aextends around the cylindrical portion 3016 a a predetermined axiallength beyond the light chip 3016 d in order to concentrate the lightcone formed or minimize stray light emissions. Depending on the degreeof light concentration desired, the covering portion 3014 a may extendmore or less axial length beyond the light chip 3016 d. In one form, thecovering portion 3014 a generally extends about 3/16 to about ¼ of aninch along the lens cylindrical portion 3016 a.

The second covering portion 3014 b extends around the LED leads 3018 aand 3018 b and provides support and strength thereto. Preferably, thesecond covering portion extends about 3/16 to about ¼ of an inch alongthe leads; however, other lengths are suitable depending on the size ofthe covering and LED and the desired amount of support and strengthneeded on the LED. The second covering portion 3014 b minimizes strainon the leads 3018 a and 3018 b, and particularly, minimizes strain at aninterface 3020 between the leads 3018 a, 3018 b and the lens 3016. Thesecond covering portion 3014 b, therefore, renders it more difficult tobend, warp, or otherwise damage a single lead 3018 a or 3018 b at theinterface 3020 because the second covering portion 3014 b combines eachlead 3018 a and 3018 b together in a more rigid cooperating assembly.The photovoltaic cell can be used to power other electrical deviceswhich can include radios, MP3 players such as iPods, and telephones.

The covering 3014 is preferably a material that can be wrapped tightlyaround the LED 3012 as illustrated in FIGS. 27-29. For example, apreferred material for the covering 3014 is a tube of bi-axiallyoriented PVC that can be tightly wrapped around the LED portions byshrink wrapping the covering 3014 using heat. However, other materialscapable of being tightly wrapped around the LED by shrink wrapping orother mechanisms using heat or other stimulus are also acceptable forthe covering 3014.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that a wide variety ofmodifications, alterations, and combinations can be made with respect tothe above described embodiments without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention, and that such modifications, alterations, andcombinations are to be viewed as being within the ambit of the inventiveconcept.

What is claimed is:
 1. Illuminated eyewear comprising: a pair of templearm members each having forward and rearward ends; inner and outersurface portions of each temple arm member having a flat configurationand extending lengthwise between the forward and rearward temple armends; a front support including a bridge portion extending between theforward ends of the temple arm members with the temple arm members andbridge portion adapted to be supported on a user's ears and nose; apivot connection between each of the front ends of the temple armmembers and the front support for pivoting of the temple arm membersrelative thereto; a light source mounted to each of the temple armmembers; a plurality of disc-shaped batteries for providing power to thelight sources; a narrow width battery compartment of each of the templearm members between the respective flat inner and outer surface portionsthereof sized so that a pair of the disc batteries are received in anon-overlapping, side-by-side arrangement in each compartment with mainsurfaces of the batteries facing the flat inner and outer surfaceportions of the temple arm members; and an electrical connection betweenthe batteries and the light sources powered thereby with the electricalconnections mounted to the temple arm members so that with the lightsources, the associated batteries and the electrical connectionstherebetween mounted to the temple arm members, there are no electricalcomponents that span the pivot connections between the temple armmembers and the front support, wherein the light sources are mountedadjacent the forward end of each of the temple arm members, and thefront support comprises a cross-frame member having opposite endportions adjacent the temple arm forward ends with the end portionscomprising blinder portions each having a blinder surface that extendsadjacent the corresponding light source to minimize glare from the lightsources.
 2. The illuminated eyewear of claim 1 wherein the light sourcesare LEDs that generate a cone of light of a predetermined angle, and theblinder surfaces are configured to generally extend along the light coneto avoid significant interference therewith.
 3. The illuminated eyewearof claim 1 wherein the battery compartment includes a removable coveralong which the inner surface portion of the one temple arm memberextends.
 4. The illuminated eyewear of claim 1 wherein the electricalconnection for the one temple arm member includes a switch mounted tothe inner surface portion of the one temple arm member.
 5. Theilluminated eyewear of claim 4 wherein the switch is adjacent the pivotconnection at the front end of the one temple arm member.
 6. Illuminatedeyewear comprising: a front support including a bridge portion generallyextending laterally along a lateral axis; a pair of temple arm membersthat are pivotal between a use configuration with the temple arm membersgenerally extending rearwardly from the front support along respectivefore-and-aft axes that are orthogonal to the lateral axis, and a storageconfiguration with the temple arm members generally extending laterallyadjacent to the front support along the lateral axis; a pivot connectionbetween each of the temple arm members and the front support; a frontframe portion adjacent each of the pivot connections; a light sourcemounted adjacent to each of the pivot connections; and an inclinedblinder surface of each of the front frame portions adjacent the lightsources and laterally inward therefrom with the inclined blindersurfaces extending at a laterally inward cant obliquely to the lateralaxis to minimize stray light from the light sources from causing glarewhen the illuminated eyewear is worn.
 7. The illuminated eyewear ofclaim 6 wherein the light sources generate a cone of light therefromhaving a predetermined conical angle, and the laterally inward cant ofthe blinder surfaces is configured so that the blinder surfacesgenerally extend along or away from the light cones to avoidinterference therewith.
 8. The illuminated eyewear of claim 7 whereinthe blinder surfaces each have a semi-frustoconical configuration withthe semi-frustoconical blinder surfaces opening laterally outward. 9.The illuminated eyewear of claim 8 wherein the semi-frustoconicalblinder surfaces each have a bottom notch opening that extends aroundthe light source when the temple arm members are pivoted to the useconfiguration thereof.
 10. The illuminated eyewear of claim 6 whereinthe temple arm members include forward ends, and the light sources aremounted to the temple arm members to project forwardly of the forwardends thereof with the blinder surfaces adjacent thereto and extendingforwardly beyond the light sources.
 11. The illuminated eyewear of claim6 wherein the light sources are mounted to the temple arm members to becanted inwardly and downwardly relative to the longitudinal axes thereofto maximize the amount of light projected to a reading area forwardly ofa wearer of the eyewear.
 12. The illuminated eyewear of claim 11 whereinthe light sources are LEDs that project cones of light that are of apredetermined conical angle and so that central axes of the cones arecanted inwardly and downwardly relative to the longitudinal axis of therespective temple arm members, and the inclined blinder surfaces areformed to each extend along a respective reference cone that is of thesame or larger conical angle than that of the light cones of the LEDswith the reference cones each having a central axis coincident with thecentral axis of the light cone of the adjacent LED with the temple armsin the use configuration thereof.
 13. The illuminated eyewear of claim12 wherein the blinder surfaces each have a semi-frustoconicalconfiguration and have a notch opening at the vertex of the referencecone in which the LED is received with the temple arms in the useconfiguration thereof.
 14. The illuminated eyewear of claim 6 whereinthe temple arm members each include a switch device mounted thereto thathas three positions thereof for providing high and low intensity lightfrom the associated light source or for providing both an “on” positionand a “temporary on” position of the associated light source.